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Recalibrating Your Path

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;do not depend on your own understanding.Seek his will in all you do,and he will show you which path to take.Proverbs 3:5-6

Shemane and I sat at the bar at True Food yesterday and she shared a story from a Joel Osteen podcast she was just listening to which I thought was very insightful.

While driving through town to a new destination, Joel had programmed Siri to tell him where to go.

“Turn left,” said Siri.

Joel went straight. He didn’t want to turn left there.

“Recalibrating route,” said Siri.

And the story goes on further about a number of turns he missed or chose not to take and Siri patiently said in her kind and maybe even British voice, “recalibrating route.”

That was a God moment. Isn’t life just like that. We don’t know exactly where we are going. We may have a vague idea and we program in our coordinates and let God’s voice direct us. And then sometimes, a lot of times, we get off route.

Whether it is because we haven’t been this way before we simply miss the turn, or whether it is because we are stubborn and want to find it ourselves or whether we think we know a faster way so we ignore the suggested route doesn’t matter. God is still there patiently, kindly recalibrating our route.

The Bible is littered with stories of people living out their humanity in perfectly imperfect ways and yet God still uses them despite their gross errors of judgment and often rebellious ways. He is able to use the doubters and the deniers and the adulterers. He uses the busybodies, the self-righteous and those who are weak and unsuspecting.

God isn’t searching for the perfect specimen to carry out His work in the world. Frankly, He doesn’t even need someone who is eagerly searching. He is pursuing you. He is calling your name. There are no lengths He won’t go to, to get your attention.

We mistakenly think we are in search of God. We are trying to make ourselves known to Him. Like a student who brings an apple in for the teacher, we hope to be God’s favorite. We raise our hands and turn in our homework and stand quietly in line trying to earn God’s favor.

It doesn’t work that way. Nothing you can DO can separate you from the love of God. That means nothing Good or Bad…No THING, can separate you. So if you have gotten way off track lately take heart. There is no penance to make, no Hail Marys to say, no browbeating that needs to occur to get back into God’s favor.

If there were then that means God’s love isn’t freely given. It is earned. And we know that is the beauty and mystery of God’s love. It just is. I don’t claim to understand it. I still try to earn it. I feel better when I’m actively pushing myself to do the right thing and when I need a course correction I am most likely to fall into the trap of self-judgment.

Today I try not to do that. I acknowledge the mistake, I see where I went off course, I ask for forgiveness, I recalibrate my path.

If you are off track right now either in thought, in word, or in action you can humbly choose to allow God to speak to you and recalibrate your path. You just have to be willing to follow His direction as best you can.

I’ll leave you with this. There is probably something you can think of right now that needs to be changed and you’ve been waiting for the right moment. Let this be that moment. It may be hard or painful but staying stuck is also hard and painful. Rip off the bandaid, make the U-turn, let go of what is not working for you.

This is what faith looks like in action. Letting go of the hurt, the confusion, the fear, when you don’t know what else is coming up next for you. You have to make space to draw in the new by first letting go of the old.

Know that God has a plan and He is continually rerouting you, recalibrating your path, allowing you to choose the way and working with you, not against you. He knows you a perfectly imperfect. He loves you in your weakness. For in your weakness His strength is made perfect.

You can’t get off course. Isn’t that a great feeling. You. Are. Right. On. Target. Just keep seeking God and listen to His kind and patient voice as He guides your path.

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April O'Leary

Spiritual Life Coach

Hi! I'm April O'Leary and I hope you’re here for a bit of a spiritual reset. If so, then you're in the right place. Make sure you sign up for the Seeds of Faith and you also get our daily blog emails sent straight to you every morning. Leave a comment on the blog and I'll be sure to reply! I'm so glad you're here.

ABOUT APRIL

Hi! I am April O'Leary...
and I’m so glad you stopped by. I’m guessing you’re here for a bit of a spiritual pick me up or to reconnect with God. I bet you’re also highly self-motivated and successful and always looking for one more tweak to get ahead in life. Yeah, me too.